CANNES '08 BIZ DAILY

by Brian Brooks, Peter Knegt, and Jenny Sung (May 18, 2008)


A New Day For MGM

MGM's new chairperson Mary Parent, who joined the company eight weeks go, sat down with Harry Sloan, MGM's chairman & CEO, for a conversation as part of the American Pavilion's ongoing series of panels and events. A ten-minute highlight reel focusing on MGM's rather stunning collection of films (its library has more than 4,000 films, twice as many as any other company) started things off, with moderator and Variety editor Tim Gray introducing the company as one "with a lot of misconceptions and a lot of curiosity."

While those suggestions remain true far back into Hollywood history, Parent and Sloan represent a very new MGM. Sloan joined the company in 2005, during the ill-fated take over of MGM by Sony (which Sloan attributes to a subtext involving Sony trying to push BluRay DVDs, which MGM's massive library assisted in). "Ultimately MGM needed to stand on its own," said Sloan. "We needed to go into original production. Films like 'The Hobbit' are immense opportunities."

Parent was brought in to help oversee this overhaul. "It's a once in a lifetime opportunity," Parent said of her new job. "It was an opportunity to create a creative environment that is really focused." A longtime producer, Parent's vision for MGM intends to come into full focus by its 2010 slate, with 8-12 original productions from MGM itself, another 5 from its partner company United Artists, and 4 or 5 acquisitions. The titles will be themed "across the board," said Parent. "And the [MGM] library is a treasure chest. There is a great deal to pull."

For MGM, among those is a continuation of Bond and Pink Panther sequels, an announced remake of "Fame" and a not-yet-announced remake of "RoboCop," possibly in 3-D. "'RoboCop" would be great in 3-D, as would something we're hoping to announce soon," said Parent. This also includes "The Hobbit," which will be filmed in two parts released in 2011 and 2012, and maybe more after. "There's 80 years between the end of 'The Hobbit' and the beginning of 'The Lord of the Rings,'" said Sloan. "Think of the franchise." One other idea MGM was toying with was more "Rocky" films. Parent asked for a show of hands from the audience who might be in to that. Though there were a few very enthusiastic responses, many kept quiet

There's also MGM's deal with United Artists, run by Tom Cruise and Paula Wagner (an independent production house that's films are exclusively distributed through MGM). This most famously includes "Valkyrie," which despite bad buzz, Parent and Sloan insist otherwise. "The film will speak for itself," said Parent. Sloan compared the bad press to that of "Casino Royale" and "Rocky" and seemed quite optimistic. He also seemed to have full faith in Parent. "Mary has not only energized MGM but has given the whole town something to talk about," he said. [Peter Knegt]

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